What are substations?
In no way are these giant metal jungle gyms. Substations are serious and important hubs of electric infrastructure where electricity is "stepped down" in voltage from the incoming transmission or sub-transmission lines to the poles and wires you see in local neighborhoods.
Why are improvements needed?
Once complete, Lunenburg residents will directly benefit from these projects through increased electric load capacity, overall reliability, and system capacity to interconnect renewable generation. These efforts also go hand in hand with Unitil's Electric Sector Modernization Plan, which is designed to proactively prepare for the interconnection of distributed energy resources identified in the MA Commonwealth’s pathway to decarbonization.
We recently held public information sessions to let Lunenburg residents know about these projects and to solicit feedback. Watch the recordings.
#1: Improving what we have
By adding another transformer to this substation we will:
- Increase the amount of electric capacity needed to support area load growth and planned development projects in the immediate area.
- Improve overall reliability by increasing the total number of circuits emanating from this substation. This limits the area affected by an outage to a smaller portion of the grid and allows us to install more tools to isolate and restore impacted areas.
- Increase the capacity of the local electric system to interconnect renewable generation.
#2: Building something new
Currently, a majority of the town of Lunenburg is supplied via the existing Mass Ave. substation. This means a power outage at that location (or the source of the existing Mass Ave. substation) would affect a significant portion of the town. This new substation will tie directly into existing National Grid transmission lines in the area and will create a new access point for electricity to enter Unitil’s system. Once complete, this new substation would be able to power a large portion of the community even if there’s an outage affecting the existing Mass Ave. substation.
In addition to diversifying our source, this project will:
- Increase the capacity of the local electric system to interconnect renewable generation
- Improve overall reliability by establishing three additional circuits supplying the Town of Lunenburg. This limits the area affected by an outage to a smaller portion of the grid and allows us to install more tools to isolate and restore impacted areas.
- Provide sufficient electric capacity to support the commercial/industrial development in south Lunenburg and the long-term electrification goals of the Commonwealth in this area of the Unitil system.
Where:
This substation will be built in an industrial (non-residential) area.
* Construction schedule is tentative as Unitil is actively exploring the limited land opportunities that would allow for the construction of such a facility.
Public Information Sessions
Watch our public info sessions to learn about substations, why they're needed, what our plans include, and what to expect.
In-person meeting:
Wednesday, September 4th, 6:30 PM at the Lunenburg Public Library, 1023 Mass Ave.
Watch the presentation, video credit: Fitchburg Access Television, Inc. (FATV).
Virtual meeting:
Thursday, September 5th, 12:00 PM
Feedback or Questions?
This is an exciting time in the energy industry. Unitil is committed to ensuring service remains safe, reliable, affordable and resilient for decades to come. We look forward to and appreciate your feedback.
At Unitil
We aim to evolve with the transforming energy needs of our customers and help create a sustainable energy future that supports Massachusett’s climate initiatives. These goals require a plan to modernize our electric system to support the level of electrification and interconnection of distributed energy resources identified in the Commonwealth’s pathway to decarbonization.
Unitil's Electric Sector Modernization Plan includes the steps we're taking towards a just transition to a reliable and resilient clean energy future. Learn more about ESMP.
